Fading Flames
by MustacheCats
Summary: Four years have passed since the war ended, and the world is enjoying peace and happiness. Everything seems perfect, but Azula has escaped the mental institute and seeks revenge from a certain waterbender. Will anyone be able to stop her before she succeeds? A Zutara fic with other ships that you will discover. Rated T for violence, death, language, and mild dark themes.
1. Escape

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters. IF I DID, the Cabbage Merchant would be the Avatar, Zutara and Tokka would be canon, Yue would have lived, and Jet would be head of the Dai Li (and a bender).

* * *

Salty tears slid down smooth, pale cheeks and slipped onto thick, red lips. A thin hand reached up to wipe them away as the crooked smile was replaced with a frown. No, she can't allow herself to be happy. At least not yet, because then she would feel victorious. And the last time she felt victorious…

Flashes of blue swam through her mind, accompanied by shouts and screams. Fire and water clashed magnificently, but beauty wasn't on her mind. She was thinking of that stupid water peasant and how she cheated, using chains to defeat the Fire Nation princess. Azula growled at the memories. No. Not this time. She lost last time because she expected to win. If there was one thing she learned during her years at the institute, it was that expecting something to be in your favor never worked.

Don't expect. Don't hope. Just know.

How foolish she had been all those years ago. The institute had helped her more than it had harmed her. She smirked. _It looks like one of Zuzu's plans failed again_, Azula thought as the cackled, shooting bright blue flames at nearby trees and bushes. It felt exhilarating to firebend again. She snickered evilly, remembering her fight with the nurses and doctors during her escape. Those idiots obviously didn't see that coming. They couldn't even defend themselves against an immobilized firebender in a straight jacket!

She lit a small flame in her palm. The mission she sent herself on would take time and she would have to be patient, but it would all be worth it when that waterbender slowly burns to death. After all, there was no fun in going on a long journey just to kill her quickly and painlessly. This had to be done just right, slowly and painfully.

She had to show no remorse. No mercy. Just bitter smiles and heartless joy. Azula knew she was a sociopath, but she really didn't care. People die all the time, so why did she need to worry about their pathetic lives? They're all just filthy peasants anyway. They didn't even deserve their lives, so why does it matter if it's taken away from them?

"You're wrong, Azula," a calm voice said from behind the princess. "Everyone is given life for a reason."

The fire princess whipped around to see her mother standing next to a burning tree. _Good. Maybe it will kill her. It's about time that annoying old bitch dies, _Azula thought. She watched impatiently as her mother didn't ignite. What felt like a lifetime later, she nearly slapped her forehead when she realized that she was expecting to get the upper hand. Again. She hated expecting things. Every time she wanted something, someone would stand in her way. Those Kyoshi Warriors, Mai, that waterbending peasant, her father, Ty Lee, Zuko, her mother…

Zuko.

Azula grinned as she remembered the horrible sight that had unfolded before her so many years ago.

* * *

_She had just executed a perfect bolt of lightning and aimed for the stupid waterbender's heart. That bitch had gotten in her way on too many occasions, and she needed to die. The flash of blue light pierced through the sky and the peasant was finally going to get what she deserved. But she didn't. Everything happened so fast, Azula couldn't keep track until it was over. A crumpled lump of Zuko laid motionless on the ground, smoke wafting off of his body._

_The princess had no idea what had just happened, but that didn't matter. She had a peasant to deal with._

_Wait… what? But the lightning should have hit the waterbender. She should be dead! Azula looked from Zuko to Katara and put both halves together. A sadistic smile spread across her features as she watched the peasant call out to the fallen prince and begin to run to him. So this was Zuzu's weakness, a filthy peasant from the Water Tribes. This should be fun. The mentally unstable princess cackled and ran toward the waterbender, ready to put her in her place._

_Unfortunately, Katara avoided Azula's attacks and sent some of her own. After a surprisingly short fight that she honestly didn't remember most of, she found herself being chained to a large grate above the sewers._

_The waterbender healed Zuko and they both watched as the princess unraveled. They almost looked like they didn't know why she was crying, even though she was obviously held back by chains and lost the battle. Who wouldn't she be upset? They seemed to take pity on her, but they shouldn't have. Azula screamed fire in their direction, hoping to at least singe one of them, but luck was not on her side that day. She was taken away and locked up, away from everyone and everything, sent away to a mental institute where they would "take care of her" and make sure she didn't harm anyone or herself._

_She vowed to get revenge one day._

* * *

The princess sneered as she was reminded of her unfortunate chain of events. How were those idiots able to defeat her? Surely they must have been told by someone… but who would have known? Azula began pacing, wracking her brain for answers to her own questions. It didn't take long for the answer to occur. Her eyes narrowed as her lips curled downward. _Of course… It's so obvious. How could I not see it before,_ she wondered, turning around once again to face her mother, only to find the burning tree.

She groaned. Of all the times for that old hag to disappear, why would she choose now? Azula looked up the hill to the institute that she had just escaped, wondering if her mother had gone there.

"She probably went back up there to be safe from you," a familiar voice said quietly. The princess turned around to see a tall woman with black hair, wearing a long black and red dress. The woman's face was devoid of any emotion or care.

"Ah, Mai. It's so nice of you to drop by, but I'm a little busy at the minute," Azula frowned at her friend. "How do you manage to show up at the worst moments anyway?"

Mai rolled her eyes. "You call 'escaping the institute and plotting revenge' one of your worst moments? I think it's a victory, right?"

"No, not yet. First I—..." The princess paused as she realized exactly what was going on. Her eyes widened as she looked up at her old friend again. She took a step back as Mai took a step forward.

"Is something wrong, Azula?" Mai's taunting voice echoed through Azula's mind, driving her insane. Deciding not to show fear, the princess urged herself to take a step forward, lifting her head in confidence.

"How are you here," she asked. "When did you arrive on this island? Surely you cannot have just gotten here!"

"I've been here the whole time. I saw what you did to the staff at the institute. You should be ashamed."

Azula snickered. "Why should I be ashamed? They should be ashamed for locking me up in the first place!"

"Whatever. Well, you're out now. So what are you going to do?"

The princess began pacing, thoughts flowing through her head. She hadn't thought of that. One thing she knew was that she would find a way off this island, figure out how to track down the waterbender, and then kill her. She escaped, so that was a start. "Well first I need transportation to get away from here. A boat." She turned back to the woman. "Where do I get one?"

Mai turned around and began walking down the beach, towards the ocean. "That," she said as her feet reached the water, "is something you will have to find out for yourself." She turned around again and fell back in the water, vanishing beneath the waves.

Azula arched an eyebrow at her friend's choice of words, taking no notice to her disappearance. She simply stared at the water that didn't seem to move when Mai fell in, allowing her eyes to travel further up to the horizon. A large ship was making its way to the island, as she could see somewhere in the distance. A wicked smile played at her features as a plan formed in her mind.

"Perfect…"

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! This is my very first fanfiction, so please tell me how I'm doing! I think it's way too rushed, so I'll make it slower and much MUCH longer in the next chapter! To those of you who got this far: thanks for reading it! Please R&amp;R to tell me what you think! Thanks!**

**-:-T-:-**


	2. News

Azula trudged up the hill, glimpsing back at the sunset once before continuing her long walk back to the institution. The horizon looked as if it was ablaze as the sun melted into the vast ocean of blue and purple. She made a quiet sound of disgust before turning back around and walking up the steep hill.

"I hate sunsets," she mumbled to herself, losing concentration on her task and nearly tripping over a rock. She immediately regained her posture and took a fighting stance, looking around warily as if she would be attacked at any moment. Noticing that no one was within sight, she calmly dropped her stance and continued her walk back to the institution. "I hate nature."

…...

The hike had taken longer than the Princess originally thought, but she was relieved that it was finally over when the metal walls of the institute came back into view. She sighed as she neared the front doors, irritated that she was going back into her awful prison, especially after just escaping.

The big grey doors swung open as smoke escaped into the outdoors, mixing itself with the fresh air. Azula wrinkled her nose in disgust, trying not to gag at the smell of burning flesh and dead bodies. Maybe she had been a bit harsh when she was fighting the nurses…

Nah.

She sauntered into the building, closing the doors behind her as if the outside world no longer existed. It was just her and the institution now–and the corpses of course, but they didn't matter anymore. Their souls had already passed onto the Spirit World so their bodies were worthless at this point.

"Not like they meant anything when they were still alive," the Princess snickered as she stepped over a dead nurse, blood staining her once-white uniform. Azula wandered through the hallways, passing many unfamiliar doors, hoping to find the one she was looking for. There were bodies, blood, and hot embers everywhere. She tried not to step on anyone or anything that could easily cause harm to her delicate skin.

Everything belonging to the royal family was important, especially her safety.

"But Zuko doesn't think that," a soft voice spoke.

No, of course Zuko doesn't think that. He couldn't care less if I got hurt or even died, the Princess thought, paying no attention to the new voice. She continued her mission to find the nurses' storage room, stopping momentarily to examine how the hallway broke off into two different ones. On the left was a pile of dead strangers still burning from the battle that took place earlier that day.

Yes, Azula remembered the battle vividly. It was actually kind of fun, if she hadn't been trying to escape. They all tried to dodge her attacks, not once thinking to throw their own at her.

Why hadn't they? Were they trying to keep her safe? Were they trying to fool her into thinking that they wouldn't dare hurt her, and then sneak up on her to deliver the final blow? Were they not firebenders?

Azula scoffed. Of course they weren't firebenders. Those poor little peasants don't deserve to have the power of bending, let alone firebending. After all, firebending was the most beautiful and powerful bending of all. And the Fire Nation was even more dominant and perfect. The Water Tribes didn't stand a chance, should the war begin anew. The Air Nomads were already gone, and only the Avatar remained; but it shouldn't be hard to take him out too. The Earth Kingdom would be more difficult to take over, but Azula knew that if she controlled the Fire Nation, then she could definitely destroy those lowly earthbenders and conquer the world.

If only Zuko and her saw eye-to-eye. Then this wouldn't be so hard and she wouldn't be lost in these stupid hallways!

She turned to the right and saw an open door with light pooling out of it. Could that be what she was looking for? The Princess took a few tentative steps forward to investigate the possible danger. No noise came out of the room, so she continues walking to it. Finally, she heard something clatter and glass break. She ran straight into the room and began punching fire blasts at whoever caused her such annoyance. Her attacks were directed back at her and she fell to the ground.

"Wh-what? Who are—"

"Shush, will you? I'm looking for something," the stranger said before turning back to the rack of clean clothes. Her long brown hair cascaded down her back and past her hips, hiding her torso.

"Are you telling me what to do, peasant?" Azula glared at the woman before standing up and lighting a small blue flame in her palm. "Who do you think you are?!"

The woman rolled her eyes and continued her search. "You don't scare me," she said very calmly, surprising the Princess, if only for a second. Finally, her eyes landed on something and she pulled it out from behind one of the uniforms, holding it up for both of them to see.

"That's it? You came here for… a box," the firebending Princess began laughing and extinguished her flame. "You peasants are so predictable. You find value in something as worthless as a wooden box?"

"It's not very appealing on the outside, I know. But if you look within…" the woman opened the box and held the object in front of Azula, the Princess's eyes widening in shock. "You find treasure."

…...

"Who are you," Azula asked the woman as they walked down the hallways in their new nurse uniforms. "I don't remember seeing you."

"I'm Liya. I arrived this morning on a boat from the capital," she replied, before turning to Azula. "And don't worry; I'm on your side."

The Princess looked skeptical, but had no proof of this woman being her enemy… Except for when she attacked her…

"No! I can't trust you. You tried to kill me!"

"Oh, please. You tried to kill me first. And I was deflecting your fire, not killing you. There's a difference."

Azula had to think about this for a minute. So apparently she was wrong; there were firebenders working at the institution. Or maybe there was just one, this woman. Wow, she really was the odd turtleduck out. Or maybe she could really help. Maybe this situation could be manipulated to be in the Princess's favor. She immediately concocted a plan to make this work out for her.

_This woman… Liya, was it? Anyway, this woman could help me get back to the capital and take over the throne. After that I'll have to dispose of her, of course. I can't have a stranger staying alive after hearing my plans. Well, first I have to figure out how useful she could be to me. If she's useless, then I won't need her and I could just get rid of her now…_

She remembered when she used to live in the palace. It was always lovely there, always quiet. That was, until Zuko came back and ruined everything. Oh how she hated that idiot, always running around and destroying lives. Everyone knew that it was much easier to end lives rather than just make them worse. Well… everyone but Zuko apparently. Azula rolled her eyes and blew her bangs out of her face, wondering how her brother could be such an idiot. He should know better than to let people live; like that stupid waterbender for example.

What was her name anyway? The Princess groaned inwardly. Why can't she ever remember this peasant's name? Oh well, the waterbender's name didn't matter anyway. What mattered was getting away from this island and getting to the capital so she could finally overthrow the government and assume the throne. Her first order of business as Fire Lord would be to have Zuzu and all of his pathetic friends publically executed. That would teach them and all of their silly supporters too. They would finally have a worthy ruler to take over the world and make the Fire Nation loved and obeyed by millions of people.

Well, at least obeyed…

Azula shrugged. She didn't really care whether or not people loved her. After all, their obedience was the only thing that mattered. _That's why these peasants don't matter, _she thought as she stepped over another body. _They didn't listen to me. I'm the Princess of the Fire Nation and these pathetic peasants blatantly ignored my demands for freedom!_

"Sorry about the mess, I've been meaning to clean it up," a voice teased. Azula was about to yell at Liya before she realized that it wasn't the strange woman's voice.

"Hmm, what was that?" Liya asked as she turned to look at the Princess.

Azula noticed something very odd about Liya. Her eyes were blue, rather than the usual gold or light brown color that most firebenders have. They were wide and sort of confused, reminding the Princess of that idiot waterbender again. She turned away and scoffed.

"You're not fooling me, peasant. I know who you are."

"Yes, I know. I'm Liya."

"Liar! I know who you are! I just… can't remember your name…"

"I just told you my name."

"No, you didn't. That isn't your real name!"

"Are you okay, Princess? You seem really tense," Liya softened her voice as she looked at Azula with sympathetic eyes. Azula, in return, rolled hers and was ready to throttle this girl when the time came.

_This wench is getting really annoying. Why did I let her come in the first place?_

_Because she knows how to get away from this stupid island._

Azula frowned as the second voice in her head answered her own question. She hated being corrected, even by herself. Oh well, she was already following this woman, so she might as well leave the island with her. She strode out through the door that the peasant held open for her, back to the outdoors and fresh air. The Princess groaned as she remembered the tricky task that lay before her, waiting to be completed.

Her plan was marvelously perfect, without a single flaw in it. First she would get back to the Fire Nation capital and figure out where to find the waterbender. Then she would go to that specific location and kill the her mercilessly. Finally she would return to the capital, overthrow the government, assume the throne, execute Zuko and his friends, and take over the entire world. How hard could it possibly be?

"Okay, my boat is further down the trail at the beach," Liya spoke, interrupting Azula's thoughts.

"Ah, yes, right," she replied, slightly irritated that a peasant dare disrupt her thoughts. She mentally shrugged it off and continued walking along the dirt path.

This small road seemed familiar; had she seen it before? She kept staring at it until it clicked in her mind. This was the path that the nurses practically dragged her down years ago when she was sent to this horrible institution. She remembered how rude they were in the presence of the rightful heir to the Fire Nation throne. Her lips twisted into a sadistic smile as she was reminded that all of those workers were dead, as of earlier that day. She loved killing people; it was always just so fun.

The path narrowed as it began getting further into a forested area. Trees were sticking up all around them as Liya calmly pressed ahead, with Azula slightly behind her. Birds chirped as a gentle breeze of wind softly blew through the leaves and grass around them. The Princess looked around at the green foliage and made a small noise of disgust. She _really_ hated nature.

…...

The servant rushed through the hallways, trying to find a certain room in the rush of anxiety and worry. He turned left and came to a dead end; the only thing in his path being a window.

_Wrong way,_ he thought, turning around to go in the other direction, mentally scolding himself for forgetting how to get around the hallways that he had to memorize when he began working at the Fire Nation Palace. He sped on his feet, making several turns and mistakes until he finally came to the door he was looking for. His wrinkly old hand came up to the hard wood and he tapped it three times, waiting for a reply.

"Who is it? I'm not scheduled for any meetings for a few more hours," the young, strong voice on the other side of the door spoke.

"Ahem," the servant cleared his throat. "Fire Lord, sir, I am Makoto, a messenger. I have just received word that—"

The door opened and Makoto was motioned inside by the tall Fire Lord. He leisurely walked in, trying to slow his heart rate from his recent run around the palace. The Fire Lord sat down behind his desk and waved his hand for Makoto to continue what he was saying.

"Right, sir. Um, right..." he stuttered. "I received a letter a few minutes ago from Kasai Island." He held out a small parchment. "It was sent urgently by messenger hawk, sir. Princess Azula has—"

He was cut off again as the taller man swiped the letter from his hands and read through it quickly. The Fire Lord slammed his fist on the table and pointed towards the door.

"Send my best soldiers after her. She must be stopped before she discovers how to leave the island, and I doubt it will take her very long," he ordered.

Makoto stood and bowed quickly before scurrying out of the room, saying, "Yes, sir, Fire Lord Zuko!"

….

"Katara! What are you doing up there? Come down already; it's time for dinner," Sokka called up to his sister from where he stood on the white snow. Katara had climbed up his watchtower again and sat at the top, staring out to the ocean in a daze. He had been trying to get her to come down for almost twenty minutes. "The food is getting cold by now. Just come back inside, it's freezing out here!

Katara rolled her eyes from her perch at the top of the ice structure. "It's always cold here, Sokka. And the food was probably cold to begin with," she said loud enough for him to hear.

"Well I don't care! Come down now! You've been up there forever!"

"An hour isn't forever, Sokka."

"Whatever! I'm hungry and Dad won't let me eat until you come inside!"

"Fine, fine, I'm coming down." Katara carefully navigated herself from the top of the watchtower to the bottom to join Sokka on the soft snow. They both rushed into the large igloo that awaited them, greeted by warmth and a tall man with two braids framing the side of his face, adorned with blue beads. He held out his arms to his children and stood up from the cushion that he had been sitting on. Katara and Sokka shared his embrace before sitting down at the table.

"It's about time you joined us for dinner, Katara," Hakoda said, chuckling and holding a small loaf of bread to his mouth. "I was about to start without you."

"Sorry, Dad, I was just out on the—"

"WHAT?! YOU WERE GOING TO EAT WITHOUT ME?! DA-AD!" Sokka interrupted his little sister to complain to his father. Katara and Hakoda looked at Sokka with unreadable expressions before turning back to each other.

"Anyways, I was on the watchtower looking for Aang. He said that he would be here tonight," Katara informed the Water Tribe Chief. "I can't wait to go back to the Fire Nation. I really miss Zuko and Iroh. Besides, no one here can make tea like Iroh can."

Everyone at the table shared a small laugh, Sokka completely forgetting his complaints as he stuffed his face with meat and other food.

"Well I'm sure Aang will be here soon, Katara," Hakoda said. "You are packed for your trip, though, right?"

"Of course I am, Dad," the waterbender replied responsibly.

"And you, Sokka? Are you packed and ready for the trip?"

The warrior in question looked up from his plate of dinner, food dripping from his mouth. "Hmm?"

"The trip, Sokka. To the Fire Nation. You remember. We leave tomorrow," Katara reminded him.

Sokka swallowed his food and plastered a stupid smile onto his face. "Oh, we're leaving tomorrow? So soon? I thought Aang was coming tomorrow." He laughed awkwardly.

Katara and Hakoda both rolled their eyes and decided to ignore Sokka until he got his thoughts together. They all ate in silence after that, hoping to hear the familiar groan of a certain sky bison. Or to hear the loud thud as six huge feet hit the snow. Or to hear the light footsteps leading toward the door, hands lifting the thick leather flaps, a cheerful voice saying—

"Oh. You guys are eating meat?"

Sokka and Katara spun around quickly to see the airbender standing by the door, smiling broadly. He shook the snow off of his shirt and waved at the Water Tribe family. The siblings wrestled him to the ground, attacking him with hugs. Hakoda chuckled and held a cup to his mouth as he watched the airbender struggling for breath from underneath the laughing teenagers.

"How were your travels, Aang," he asked, setting the cup back down on the table. "Was the weather nice?"

"Yeah, the weather was amazing," the airbender was bursting with untold stories and obvious excitement as he was finally relieved of Katara and Sokka's weight on his smaller body. "And the air acolytes are doing a fantastic job fixing up the Air Temples! I haven't been up north to see what they've been doing there yet, but I'll get around to that this summer."

By now, Sokka had lost complete interest and was eating as much food as he could at the table again. Katara stared at the Avatar with wide eyes, intrigued by every word that came from his mouth. She was really proud of the young man that he had become over the years and through their travels together those years ago. He really had grows up.

Aang looked around curiously before asking, "Hey where's Toph? I thought she was here."

Sokka rolled his eyes and pointed toward the hallway on the other side of the room. He spoke between mouthfuls of food. "She went to bed early. Keeps complaining about how she 'never gets sleep since the baby arrived' and other nonsense."

The woman in question poked her head into the room, heavy bags under her eyes showing her lack of sleep. "I heard my name," she practically whispered.

Everyone in the room went silent, all eyes directed at Sokka. He feebly tried defending himself. "HEY! I didn't say her name, it was Aang!"

The blind earthbender smiled and waved at Aang. "Hi Aang. How was the Southern Air Temple?"

"It was great. The air acolytes have been working nonstop to make it just like it used to be! They even refurbished the—"

"Yeah that's awesome. Sounds good. I'm going back to bed now but you can tell me tomorrow."

"Oh… Okay then. Good night, Toph!" Aang watched her walk back out of the room, half-asleep already. He turned around to see Sokka stuffing food in his mouth again and wondered if he ever stopped eating. His eyes went around the room, taking in all of the animal pelts, furs, heads, and skin hanging from the wall and lying lifeless on the floor. He sighed. Not everyone could be as loving and caring towards animals as he was.

….

After everyone finished their meals and wished each other a good night, Aang was shown to his temporary room with Momo while Appa was taken to the stables. Hakoda retreated to his bedroom, Sokka to his, and Katara to hers, leaving the airbender to wander the quiet city. He knew where to go when he was done exploring. It wasn't very late, but it was eerily silent during his stroll. Momo chose to stay back at the igloo for warmth, lacking the ability to warm himself, unlike Aang.

Finally he heard a small sound that resembled a bird screeching. He looked up to the sky and saw a Fire Nation messenger hawk soaring down to him, shaking from the frigid temperature. He held out his arm as a landing perch for the bird, hoping it wouldn't freeze to death before he was able to retrieve the message. The hawk shivered and let out a painful cry of discomfort as Aang reached into the pocket strapped to its back. He read through the letter, eyes widening in surprise as he reached the end.

Hurriedly, the young Avatar ran back to the igloo to share the letter with his friends. They had to know that Azula escaped.


End file.
